The inspection, primarily concerning the construction of plants is underway, the company’s representative said

BERLIN, July 21. /TASS/. Germany’s engineering group Siemens has established a work group specifically for examining the operations of Russian clients for compliance with export standards and the terms of existing contracts, the company’s representative Philip Ench told TASS Friday.

"The inspection, primarily concerning the construction of plants is underway," he said, refusing to give the names of particular companies.

"The work group involved in the inspection is trying to define whether all partners, subsidiaries or firms holding a license comply with the European Union’s export regulations," he added.

Siemens said in a press release published earlier on Friday that the company will "halt power generation equipment deliveries from existing contracts to state-controlled customers in Russia for the time being." "This only affects power equipment supplies, which is clearly outlined in the report," Ench said.

The company said that all four gas turbines that were delivered in the summer of 2016 for the project in Taman (Southern Russia) have since been locally modified and illegally moved to Crimea against clear contractual agreements.

Siemens plans to fully divest its minority interest (46%) in the Russian company Interautomatika, which offers products and services for power-plant instrumentation and control systems.

Also, the report said, two employees representing Siemens on IA's supervisory board will be exchanged or hold their office in abeyance, respectively, with immediate effect while Siemens conducts an investigation into the matter. New business engagements in gas turbine power generation equipment in Russia will be solely executed by its majority-owned SGTT joint venture and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Siemens, Moscow, and all new engagements would be subject to the new, permanent control mechanism, the company said.

On July 11, Siemens filed an action against Russia’s Technopromexport (TPE) due to deliveries of gas turbine units to Crimea. The defendant in the case is the joint venture with Power Machines. However, according to the press service representative of the company, Wolfram Trost, claims have been filed against Technopromexport only. Siemens stressed that it wanted the turbines to be delivered to the initial delivery point - Taman. According to Reuters’ sources, Russia supplies Siemens turbines to Crimea, contrary to EU sanctions.

In response, Rostech, whose subsidiary - Technopromexport - is building thermal electric stations in Crimea stated that four turbines units for the stations had been purchased on the secondhand market. The turbine produce was not specified.

The Russian Siemens representative office refuted the fact of turbine deliveries to the peninsula, but stated later that at least two of the four turbines produced for a thermal power station in Taman had been delivered to Crimea.